A Pirate's Life
by Jacky Union
Summary: When a boy is forced into a life of piracy, he must embrace an ancient creed in order to fulfill his late father's wishes whilst also following in his footsteps. Follow the memories of Archibald Blaine, Jr. as he dodges Templars, bounty hunters, and the occasional Man-O-War! Rated M for strong language.
1. Introduction

Hello! _No wait, that's stupid._ Um… sup! _Good, better! _I am Jacky Union! I'm no stranger to writing, already have 2 stories up, and I thought I'd add an AC fanfic to the list (because my short attention span demands it). AC is my all time favourite game series and recently beating AC4 inspired me to write my own story about my own character. So here's the story about my OC. Also, no flames, please. Criticism's perfect, I welcome it! But I've no tolerance for idiocy.

xXx

_Pitter-patter, pitter-patter_

The rain gently hit the window to the somewhat large home. The home was undoubtedly that of an upper class citizen. The owner of this residence, Archibald Blaine, Sr. inherited a rather large sum of money from his late father, Edward Blaine. Using this money, he settled down in a nice home, got married to the love of his life, Elizabeth Copperfield, and had a child, Archibald Blaine, Jr., who he had great expectations for.

A boy sat in front of the window, watching the rain hit the window. This boy, Archibald Blaine, Jr. ("Archy" to his father) was undoubtedly, completely, and utterly BORED! It was driving him mad! INSANE! But, being brought up in a calm and collected household, he didn't let it show. So he just sat there… counting the raindrops… bored. Archy was never this bored when his mum was alive. They'd play games together, she'd sing to him, read him stories. Unfortunately, Archy's mother caught ill and passed away no less than 2 years ago. Now he was stuck with his father, who was mostly too busy working to entertain his son.

"Father." Archy called to his father, who was sitting in his velvet chair near the fireplace, reading a book and smoking his pipe.

"Yes, Archy?" the middle-aged man responded, eyes fixated on his book.

"I'm bored. Can you tell me another story?" Archy asked with no real enthusiasm.

Archibald merely sighed and removed his reading glasses. He knew how his son loved his stories about heroic and chivalrous pirates (if such a thing existed). "Maybe later, Archy. I'm-" Archibald was interrupted by a loud knock on the door. Archibald got up and made his way to the door. Archy couldn't hear much from his position, but he could make out a little. First his father greeted someone cheerfully. From what Archy could see, they seemed to be soldiers (if their red coats were anything to go by). Archibald's expression changed from calm and kind to… something Archy had never seen his father express before. Archibald quickly looked back to his son and then poked his head through the door to continue speaking with the soldier's, this time in a whisper. Archy could see a hand emerge from the doorframe and grasp his father's shoulder. Archibald quickly jerked away and slammed the door shut, locking it.

"Father?" Archy asked.

"Get to the attic! NOW!" Archibald shouted, shocking Archy in more ways than one. Archy's father only yelled at him when he did something bad, REALLY bad, and Archy couldn't recall doing anything mischievous recently. Not only that… but they didn't have an attic. At least, not that Archy knew of. Grabbing Archy's hand, Archibald led him upstairs, to his study.

"Father?! What's going on?!" Archy asked, frantically.

"Damn it all…" Archibald said under his breath, barricading the door. Walking over to one of the many bookshelves, he pulls on an untitled book with some sort of raindrop symbol on the spine. "I just wish I had more time!" Just then the bookshelf slid outwards, like a door. Beckoning Archy, Archibald went through the revealed doorway. Following his father, Archy couldn't help but panic. It was just a normal day and suddenly, out of nowhere, his father was taking him to an attic that he didn't even know existed!

Upon reaching the top of the creaky, wooden stairs, Archibald lit a candle, providing little light to the stuffy room. "There is too much to explain and in so little time…" Archibald mumbled, moving over to a chest in the corner of the attic.

"What do you mean, father? What's happening?"

"No time! You must get out of here!" Archibald said, unlocking the chest and stuffing its contents into a rucksack.

"What? You're not coming with me?" Archy asked. After a moment of silence, his father spoke up.

"I will distract them. You must trust my judgement, son." Archibald then walked back over to Archy and handed him his pack. "For both our sakes." He then dangled some battered, old stone on a string in front of Archy's eyes. The stone was plain, save for some faded carvings. "From now on, this is the most important thing in your life. Make sure that absolutely no one but you possesses it. Understood?"

"Father, I don't understand!"

Archibald then put the stone around Archy's neck, tucking it in his shirt. "I know, son. I know. All will be revealed in due time." Just then there was a loud commotion coming from downstairs. The soldiers broke through. "Now! You must go!" Archibald shouted, opening a panel along the slanted ceiling that led to the outside.

"But… I can't! I can't leave you!"

"Yes, you can!" Archibald said, pointing to the hale bay by the stables just below. "Go to the docks, seek a man who calls himself 'Marlowe'. He's the captain of _The Thane_ and… a true friend. Tell him that you're my son, he'll understand. Now jump, hurry!"

Archy then hugged his father. "I'll make you proud father, I love you."

Returning the hug, a tear came to Archibald's eye. "I love you, too, Archy. I know you'll make me proud. No matter what, don't ever look back."

Breaking the hug, Archy nodded and got situated in the opening in the roof. Looking back to his father one last time, he jumped, landing safely in the hay bale below. Right as he began running, he heard a commotion from the attic.

"HALT!" shouted, what seemed to be, a soldier. This was followed by the sound of a sword scraping its scabbard as it was unsheathed.

"Dead men tell no tales!" was all Archy heard his father say before the sound of several gunshots rang from the small opening.

Remembering his father's advice, Archy whipped his tears and ran to the docks as fast as he could. It was funny how just a moment ago he was bored out of his mind. Now he was alone, wishing that today wasn't as… exciting as it was. He was drenched, the raining pouring down on him like a monsoon. He was already feeling a cold coming on. Though, a cold was the least of his worries.

_Fast Forward_

Upon reaching the docks, Archy kept his eyes open for _The Thane._ Unfortunately, being too focused on the ship, he bumped into a sailor.

"Oi! Watch where ye going, ye li'l street rat!" the sailor shouted, shoving the 12 year old boy.

"I'm d-deeply sorry, sir."

"Trying to pickpocket me, are ye?! HUH?!"

"No, sir! Nothing of the sort! I'm just looking for Mr. Marlowe!"

"I don't give a shite who yer looking for! I'll skin ye alive, you damned-" the sailor raised his hand to strike the boy, only to be interrupted by a slap in the back of the head.

"Calm down, ye blasted idiot!" said the man responsible, who seemed to know this sailor. "Sorry about that, lad. Johnny-boy's got a bit of a temper, that he does. So, a little bird tells me ye be looking fer Ugly Jack, eh?" said this bearded stranger. His clothes looked as though they were once elegant, but years of hard labour and dirty work ruined them. His smile showed off his disgustingly yellow teeth. His black hair and beard were equally unclean with a ratty tricorne laying atop his head.

"No, sir. I'm looking for Mr. Marlowe."

"'Sir'!? BAHAHAHA! And that be CAP'N Marlowe to ye, lad! 'Ugly Jack' Marlowe, at yer service!" "Ugly Jack" said, removing his tricorne and bowing, showing off his balding scalp. "Now, why you be lookin' fer me, lad?" he asked, replacing his hat atop his head.

"I'm Archibald Blaine's son, captain. Archibald Blaine, Jr." Archy answered, trying to avoid eye contact. Marlowe's expression changed to one of worry. His eyes turned to the direction of Blaine Manor, seeing smoke rise in that direction. The soldier's had burned the building down.

"Not anymore." Marlowe said slowly. "You got any experience sailing, lad?"

"No, sir- captain."

"We'll have to remedy that, then." Marlowe said after a moment, surprising Archy. "Welcome aboard _The Thane_… Archer." Marlowe said, placing his hand on "Archer's" back as he led him to his ship.

Archy, now apparently "Archer", according to his new captain, still had many unanswered questions. But he had a feeling that they'd be answered in time, just as his father promised him. This life would take some getting used to, that much he knew, but he couldn't shake the strange feeling that this was all a part of something far, far greater than a simple change of lifestyle…

xXx

Well, I think that went well. Hope you enjoyed it, guys! Feel free to send me a PM or leave me a review! Next chapter will be up as soon as I WANT IT UP! I mean, as soon as it's finished! Thanks for reading! Thanks for being sexy! Jacky out!


	2. The Big Leagues

Chapter 2! If you're reading this, CONGRADULATIONS! You decided to stick with me… for now! I'll promise not to _purposely _disappoint you!

xXx

It was a normal, peaceful day in Kingston. Civilians roamed the streets, soldiers stood guard at their posts, and boats docked and set sail at the port. All was quiet… until a familiar, and hated, face emerged from an old warehouse.

"GET THAT PIRATE!" an officer yelled, chasing the man with other soldiers in tow.

This man slammed the warehouse doors behind him, hoping it would slow them down. But, unfortunately, the door burst open as a large grenadier (Or "brute") shot through it. The man kept running, a smirk on his face. He didn't have any worries about his current predicament, it's happened all before. And often, too. Running through an alley, he emerged on the other side… where many more soldiers lay in wait. He turned to run back through the alley, but stopped when the previous soldiers cut him off.

The man stood at an average 5'10 inches with dark brown hair stopping just below his ears and a "not quite there yet" beard. His ratty, crimson jacket with golden trim stopped just below his waist with the sleeves rolled up to show his nautical tattoos on his forearms. He wore a worn out tricorne, tilted to the side, and a bandana tied around his forehead. His faded, red sash, dark brown boots, breeches, and button-up shirt completed his getup. One look at this man is enough evidence to prove that he's no doubt a pirate. He was sporting dual pistols, currently holstered in his bandoleer and a cutlass with a golden skull and crossbones at the base of the blade.

"Nowhere to run, cutthroat. Come quietly or face death." a soldier spoke up.

This man seemed careless as he flipped a coin repeatedly. "You say that now, but we all know either choice ends with my dead. If I refuse, you run me through here and now, but if I go with you, I end up rotting in a gibbet, the crows pecking at my flesh." the man then looked up, revealing his bright blue eyes from under his tricorne. "The way I see it… I'm better off making my own choice." One more flip of the coin and suddenly everything was encased in smoke. The soldiers coughed, a bit of the smoke entering their lungs. When the smoke cleared, the man was gone, leaving behind a few corpses in his wake. The officer removed his hat and threw it on the ground, stomping on it while exclaiming every curse word he knew.

The man watched the scene, amused, from a rooftop down the road. He laughed out loud when he saw the officer smack a soldier for trying to calm him down.

"Enjoying yerself, me boy?" a voice said from behind.

Turning his head, Archer was glad to see his captain, and oldest friend, Ugly Jack Marlowe. As fate would have it, Marlowe was a master assassin who worked with, and befriended, Archer's father. Ugly Jack Marlowe, an infamous and feared pirate, was not only Archer's friend, but his mentor, too. He taught Archer the Maxim.

_Nothing is true._

_Everything is permitted._

The Three Ironies.

_The Assassins seek to promote peace, but commit murder. _

_The Assassins seek to open the minds of men, but require obedience to rules. _

_The Assassins seek to reveal the danger of blind faith, yet practice it themselves._

And, most importantly, the Three Tenets.

_Stay your blade from the flesh of the innocent._

_Hide in plain sight._

_Never compromise the Brotherhood._

Marlowe never let Archer forget these, wanting him to embrace the old ways of the Brotherhood, just like him. Although Marlowe seemed to be a rebellious scoundrel at first, he revered honour and the Creed above all else. Not only did Marlowe teach Archer the way of the Assassins, but the way of the pirates, too. He made Archer into a formidable sailor in no time. Marlowe was undoubtedly the most, and probably only, honest pirate to sail the seas.

"Aye, captain." Archer answered, looking back to the previous scene. "York's taken care of." Archer stated, regarding his recent assassination of a low-ranking Templar. Archer was still small time, only allowed to take on less important targets. "There be a chance ye might fuck up… might as well fuck up slightly." was Marlowe's justification of this.

"Hmph, read me mind, did ye? In any case, we best get back to the ship. We be setting sail."

"Where to, if I may ask?"

"Nassau. Think it be about time for ye to meet the lads upstairs." Marlowe answered, turning and walking away. Arching a brow, Archer followed.

"Lads upstairs? Are they… you know, Assassins?"

"Only one of them is, aye. I'll tell ye more on the way. Ye be going on a mission with… him." Marlowe said. As they boarded the ship, _The Thane_, Archer nodded.

"Then let's not keep him waiting."

"Good idea, lad. Oh, and also… try to make me seem tough, alright?" Marlowe said jokingly as he positioned himself at the helm of the ship, Archer at his side. Responding with a nod and a chuckle, Archer did what he did best. He yelled.

"Captain at the helm! Man your stations!" Archer yelled to get the crew ready.

"Full sail, lads! We be burning precious daylight!" Marlowe yelled as the crew got into position.

And with that, the pitch black sails of _The Thane_ opened up in all their glory, Marlowe's Jolly Roger, a skull and crossbones sporting a tricorne, flying high above them. As the ship pulled out of the port, Archer began singing.

_Now we are ready to sail for the horn!_

The crew, immediately catching on, joined it.

_Way, hay, roll an' go!_

And the crew continued singing their shanties as they made their way to Nassau.

Before long, _The Thane_ pulled into Nassau's ports. What _The Thane_ lacked in combat she made up for in speed. Archer's favourite feature about _The Thane._

"Hmph… so THIS is Nassau? THIS is the 'Pirate Capital' of the West Indies?" Archer said, venom dripping from his voice as he looked over the poverty-stricken shanty town.

"Watch it, lad. I know it ain't much, but it be the best we can do fer now. Come along." Marlowe said as he made his way off the ship, Archer in tow.

"But, cap… with all the loot these guys reel in, shouldn't Nassau be prospering?"

"Oh-ho-ho! Look at the financial expert over here! Ye try running a community with what you plunder and come back to me. Then ye will understand."

"Right… sorry, captain." Archer said, the conversation dying down as they made their way to, what seemed to be, a tavern. _"Jaysus, even the tavern's shabby. And I've seen my share of shabby taverns."_

Suddenly, Archer heard the hardy laughter that could only belong to a sailor. Looking to the source of the sound, Archer saw a group of 5 sitting at a table and 1 more sitting on the railing beside it.

"Well if it isn't 'Ugly Jack' Marlowe! Look! Look everyone! Dead man walking! BAHAHA!" said an obvious pirate sporting a long black beard.

"Look around ya, Thatch! We all be dead men!" Marlowe said as he approached the bearded man and shook his hand.

"And the boy! Is that Archer?"

"Aye!" Marlowe said, shoving the young man foreword a bit.

"Well, well, well! I half expected you to be a shark, what with Marlowe praising your sailing so much!" said a blue-coated man.

Archer quickly studied their face, a habit he's developed thanks to his captain.

"_Hm… I don't know their names yet. Until I do, I will refer to them as 'blackbeard', 'crazy eye', 'mutton chops', 'blondie', 'kid', and 'calico'" _Archer thought to himself. He often made up nicknames for people whose names he didn't know.

Little did Archer know… he'd been staring at these men in silence for a while.

"Er… forgive the boy, he be shy!" Marlowe intervened. "Lad, this be Edward 'Blackbeard' Thatch, Charles Vane, Benjamin Hornigold, Edward Kenway, James Kidd, and 'Calico Jack' Rackham."

"_Hm… 3 out of 6 isn't bad…" _Archer thought to himself. "Right, I've heard of some of you. A pleasure to meet you all." Archer said, regretting his politeness. _"Blast it! Pirates aren't polite! You blighted idiot!" _Archer could see how they felt about him. The looks on their faces said it all. Vane looked like he wanted to eat him, Kenway looked amused, Hornigold looked confused, Kidd looked at him like he saw a ghost, Blackbeard looked at Marlowe in surprise, and Rackham looked like… well he looked like he was drunk and about to pass out. If Archer wasn't good, he was GREAT at recovering. So with that, Archer slammed his palms on the table, looked them in the eye, and said "Now which one of you ugly bastards is going to order me some grog!?" with a crooked smile. Before he knew it, he was surrounded in hardy laughter.

"Get this lad something to drink!" Blackbeard shouted to the bartender.

Archer took his seat at the table and began talking the night away with his new associates. He hadn't forgotten that one of these men was an Assassin, in fact he'd been trying to figure out which one it was from the moment he saw them.

"_Vane doesn't seem to have the patience to be an Assassin. Thatch seems to 'pirate-y' to be one, but then again, so does Marlowe. Kenway's got the proper attire, but looks don't mean anything. Rackham… well I hope he's not an Assassin. Kidd seems to be a secretive sort, like he's hiding something. Hornigold seems to be respectful, seems to follow the rules. If I didn't know any better, I'd say he's a Templar! But, then again, Assassins have to follow the Creed."_

He knew he'd figure it out in time. After all, whoever the Assassin was, he had to go on a mission with him. This only made Archer anxious. It either meant Archer was proving himself to the Brotherhood... or this mission was so difficult it required 2 Assassins to complete it successfully. Both suggestions worried Archer.

_"Is it too late to return to England?"_


End file.
